Incorporating Excel into the Curriculum

Excel would be a great application to use in the classroom.
(1) One idea I came across in a lesson plan, would be to use Excel as spreadsheet programs in which students collect data, create the appropriate pie charts and find the percentages to describe the various colors in a bag of Skittles. Students could then take this lesson and apply it to other Math problems of this nature that they may have in the future.

(2) Another idea could be to use Excel as a spreadsheet and database for collecting weather information. In Science, students could track the weather as part of a lesson on the water cycle. Students could chart when it rains, cloudy days, stormy days, dry days, etc… Students could then find the average number of days of rain and so forth.

(3) As a database, students could keep track of books they’ve read by title, author, subject matter and reading/difficulty level. This could help students to not read the same books over and over, as well as chart their reading level progression over the course of the school year.

(4) In an Economics lesson, students could keep track of their own personal allowances in spreadsheet format. Students could see how much money they spend on certain items such as entertainment, books, clothes, etc… per week or per month. They could then see the percentages in a chart format, much like credit card companies and banks do for their online customers.

(5) Students can also incorporate Excel into an Economics unit on inflation. In spreadsheet format, students could plot the changes in the everyday, real-life prices of items such as gas or groceries. Students can see the prices increase (or decrease) per month by using averages and making graphs.